WORLD’S FAIR
World’s fair (or universal exhibition) is held in different parts of the world to showcase the achievement of the nation. It is held every five years and lasts for three to six months. Every exhibition has a different theme. It has been governed by Bureau International Des Exposition (BIE) in Paris since 1928.
BEGINNING OF WORLD FAIR
The first world’s fair was organized by Prague in Bohemia in 1791 (Present day Czech Republic). French began to host industrial exhibition in series since 1798 to showcase their achievement in industrial phase to stimulate the economy.
Inspired by the idea, Britain wanted to hold a exhibition on larger scale and . As a response, an exhibition was held in 1851 by Britain which came to known as the first official world’s fair. It was called Great Exhibition and the theme was ‘Industry of all Nation’, representing the reason for hosting the world’s exhibition.
The exhibition was self-financed by Prince Albert, prince consort of Queen Victoria to prove Britain’s role as an ‘industrial leader’ to the world. The exhibition showcased artwork and products from different parts of the world and attracted lot of attention.
Crytal Palace for Great Exhibition was built in the matter of nine months. It was first of its kind structure, build with iron and glass designed by Joseph Paxton who had great interest in green house and horticulture. The crystal palace turned out to be a huge success and attracted attention of many countries.
The palace was moved to an open area in South London in June 1854. Unfortunately, the palace did not last long and was destroyed on 30 November 1936 by the fire. The fire spread quickly because of the high winds that night and flammable materials in the palace, destroying everything in no time.
WORLD EXPOS
The purpose for hosting world exposition have involved over the years from era of industrialization phase to a cultural exchange. The focus shifted from innovation to message to create different types of experience and understanding.
The popularity of the World Expos have significantly gone down though it still attracts a large amount of tourist form all over the world. Technology allows people to view building at their fingertips without bearing the cost of travelling which is one of the reasons of the lower number of tourists.
It is a way for the nation to boost its tourism, draw attention to the city and allows the creatives to express their art in front of the world. With the attendance of people from different countries it built a platform for cultural exchange and diplomacy.
World’s expo most famous structure might be Eiffel Tower which was constructed as the centerpiece of 1889 World’s fair. It also given us any others architecture marvels such as the Biosphere in Montreal, Space Needle in Seattle, The Magic Fountain of Muntjac in Barcelona, The Atomism in Brussels, Canada Palace in Vancouver.
ART, ARCHITECHTURE AND TECHNOLOGY
Many of the structures built during the World Expos are considered a symbol of history and architecture of that era. It was considered a great honor for a nation to host world expos, a great amount of effort and budget was put into showcase the best architecture and creativity of the nation. It was a way to showcase innovation and futuristic ideas in architecture.
When the world’s fair was at its peak, creativity and experimentation were seen in every structure. Over the years as the world rapidly changed and with the introduction of technology, the style of architecture has also gone through a significant change.
When the First World Expo began, it attracted a lot of attention from other nations. It was form of competition among nation to showcase their strength. The architecture of this period had a similar characteristic-Gigantism, trying to build the largest structure. And the architecture for the world’s exhibition were constructed in such a way that they could be dismantled after the exhibition was over.
In the first half of the 20th century, the disaster, losses and under the pressure of economic problems caused by war, the designs became simpler and smaller serving as a decorative structure rather than a form innovation. The large number of displaced people left limited space for large structure and building.
By the time of end of Second World War, due to Cold War, at this stage the technology became intwined with the architecture. Geo-political map went through a massive change with many nations gaining independence. The numbers of building at the World Expos increased, every building (known as pavilion) being built by different nations.
Utopian architecture began appearing and the different types of materials began being used not only iron. There was awaking of awareness about sustainability and climate change was the hot topic. The structures were recyclable, energy saving and useable, housing many.
In the twenty first century, while the architecture remained same, the purpose of world expos changed. The focused changed from creativity and architecture to innovation and technology. Architecture pieces lacked functionality instead it was used to create an impact on the public.
